Shocking moment DEAD BODY falls out of van into middle of busy road

THIS is the shocking moment a DEAD BODY fell from the back of the van into a busy road.

A dead body fell from a coroner's van into the middle of a busy road[JERRY BRADLEY / FACEBOOK]

Drivers had to swerve to avoid the corpse which was on a stretcher that landed in the middle of heavy traffic.

The dead body which was covered in a white sheet had wheeled onto the road after it fell from the back of a coroner's ambulance on Friday.

Witness Jerry Bradley was waiting in a queue of cars when he saw the gurney come flying out of the back of a vehicle.

Speaking to LevittownNow.com he said: "At first I thought someone was pulling a prank, but traffic was just driving around.

"I helped a woman from the coroner’s office get it out of the road, as it appeared to be broken a little."

The incident happened near a shopping centre in Pennsylvania, America around noon.

At first I thought someone was pulling a prank

Witness Jerry Bradley

Bucks County officials apologised for the incident and said it was caused by a mechanical malfunction with the rear door.

A statement said: "At approximately 12:00 p.m. on Friday, July 11, 2014, the Bucks County Coroner’s office realised that a rear door mechanical malfunction had taken place during the transport of a deceased individual on Street Road.

"The driver immediately knew that this malfunction occurred.

"The driver of the transport vehicle returned to make the transport complete, with the help of a bystander and in a matter of moments.

"Care was taken to respect the deceased individual in this instance.

"The Bucks County Coroner’s Office deeply regrets this incident and will take steps to ensure that it is not repeated in the future."